Lyon County times. [volume] (Silver City, Nev.) 1874-1907, 1887-05-21


up then, though the wings weren't built-and
smoking my pipe and listening to tho lashing
of the rain, for it was very foul night. when
suddenly an old pointer dog had, named
Ben, gave bark
"'Iie down, Ben; it's only the Kanirs,
said l.
"J,.st then thought heard faint sort of
rapplng at the door, and Ben barked again,
so got up and opened it, and in came two
little girls, wrapped up in old shawls or some
such gear. Well, l shut the door, looking
out first to see if there were any more outside,
and then stood and stared at the two little
things with my mouth open. There they
stood, hand in hand, the water dripping
from both o: them and the eldest might
have been II, and the second about 8. They
didn't say anything, but the eldest turned
and took the shawl and hat off the younger
that was Bessie-and there was her sweet
little face and her golden hair, and damp
enough both of them were, and she put her
thumb in her mouth, and stood and looked at
me tin began to think that was dreaming.
s'Please, SIR said the biggest, at last, tis
this Mr. Crofts house-Mr. Croft, South
African RepublicP
ayes, little miss, this Is bis house, and this
Is the South African Republic, and am he.
And now who might you be, my dearsF
answered.
1'If you please, sir, we are your nieces, and
we have come to you from England
"'Whatp halloaed, startled out Of my
wits, as well might be.
"'Oh, sir, says the poor little thing, clasp
ing her thin, wet hands, please don't send US
away. Bessie is so wet and cold and hungry,
too, she isn't fit to go any farther
L. IL 30, base tNaa
little one cried too, from fright and cold and
sympathy.
swell, of course, I took them both to the
fire and set them on my knees and halloaed for
Hebc the old Hottentot woman who did my
cooking. and between us we undressed them
and wrapped them up in some old clothes
and fed them with soup and wine, SO that in
half an hour they were quite happy and not
bit frightened.
"'And now, young ladies' said, come
and give me kiss, both Of you, and tell me
how you came here.'
"And this Is the tale they told me-com-
pleted, of course, from what learned after
ward-and an odd one il Is 1t seems that
my half brother married a Norfolk lady-a
sweet young thing-and treated her like a
dog He was a drunken rascal, was my half
brother, and he beat his poor wife and shame
fully neglected her, and even i'll treated the
two little girls, till at last the poor woman,
weak as she was from suffering and Ill health,
could bear it no longer, and formed the wild
idea Of escaping to this country and throw
ing herself upon my protection. 1t will show
how desperate she must have been. She
scraped together and borrowed some money,
enough to pay for three second class passages
to Natal and a few pounds over, and one day,
when her brute Of husband was away on
the drink and gamble, she slipped on board
sailing ship in the London docks, and before
he knew anything about it they were well out
to sea. But it was her last effort,
poor, dear soul, and the excitement of
il finished her. Before they had
been ten days at sea she sank and died, and
tbe two poor children were left alone And
what they must have suffered, or rather
what poor Jess must have suffered, for she
was old enough to feel, God only knows. But
shock toHhis hour. 1t has left its mark on
her, sir But, let people say what they WILL
there Is power that looks after the helpless,
and that power took those poor, homeless,
wandering children under its wing. The cap
tain of the vessel befriended them, and when
at last they got to Durham some of the passen-
gers made a subscription and got an old Boer,
who was coming up this way with his wife to
the Transvaal, to take them under his charge
The Boer and his vrouw treated the children
fairly well, but they did not do one thing
more than they bargained for. At the turn
from the Wakkerstrom road, that you came
along to-day, they put the children down, for
they had no luggage, and told them If they
went along there they would come to Mein-
heer Croft's house. That was in the middle
of the afternoon, and they were until o'clock
getting here, poor little dears, for the track
was fainter then than it is now, and they
wandered off into the veldt and would have
perished there in the wet and cold had they
not CHANGED to see the lights Of the house.
And that was how my nieces came here,
Capt. Mel And here they have been ever
since, except for couple of years when
sent them to the Cape for schooling, and a
lonely man was when they were away"
"And how about the fatherp asked John
Mel, deeply interested. "Did you ever hear
any more of him2"
"Hear of him, tine villain." almost shouted
the old man, jumping up in wrath. cay,
d-n him, heard Of him. What do you
thinkl The two chicks had been with me
some eighteen months, long enough for me to
learn to love them with all my heart, when
new kraal wall, see fellow come riding up
on an old, raw boned, gray horse. Up he
comes to me, and as he came looked at him,
and said to myself, you are drunkard, you
are, and rogne; it's written ON your face,
and, what's more, know your face.' You
see did not guess it was son Of my own
fathers that was looking at How
should II"
ais your name CroftP he said
"'Ay,' ! answered.
"'So is mine,' he went on with sort of a
drunken leer. I'm your brother
"'Are your said, beginning to get my
back up, for I guessed what his game was,
'and what may you be afteri tell you at
once, and to your face, that if you are my
brother you are a blackguard, and don't
want TO know you or have anything to do
with you; and If you are not, beg your
pardon for coupling you with such a
scoundrel'